luck with your efforts, they are important ones. >> true. >> great to see you. today on power politics, lame duck: >> obviously republicans had a good night. >> faced with a new republican senate majority, senator reid's going to have a different office assignment january skwfrn. >> president obama is trying to stay relevant and threatening to take executive action on immigration reform. >> it's like waving a red flag in front of the bull with a president. he is back on his own. he is going to poison the well. wipeout. >> how about that? >> there were big wins for republican women. squeal! >> and a closer look at the mid-term influence on u.s.

foreign policy. >> plus, 2016? today. >> the national mood on the clintons and jeb bush. >> and the impact of successful ballot initiatives including the minimum wage and marijuana. >> legalized in washington, d.c. >> no congress has an excuse. >> all of that and more now on pow "power politics." "david shuster, by all accounts, the 2014 mid-terms exceeded expectations. the election outcomes were far worse than what democrats had been worsing far and far better than what republicans had been dreaming of. the g.o.p. gained at least seven ceased in the u.s. senate and the u.s. house, republicans padded their majority by gaining a higher than expected 13 seats. the margins mean in january, when the new lawmakers get sworn in, this will be the most dominant republican congress since 1929.

at the whitehouse, president obama said voters were angry at washington dysfunction and viewed him as the most responsible. >> to everyone who voted, i want you to know i hear you to the two-thirds voters who chose not to participate, i hear you, too. >> mitch mcconnell who won his rely and is now poised to become the chamber's majority leader gridlock. >> the american people have changed the senate. so, i think we have an obligation to change the behavior of the senate. and to begin to function again. >> the contours of another clash are already taking shape. the issue involves the white house plan to take executive action on immigration reform. >> before the end of the year, we are going to take whatever lawfully actions that i can take that i believe will improve the functioning of our immigration system that will allow us to surge additional resources to the

border. >> the reaction from republican leaders was harsh. >> when you play with matches, you take the risk of burning yourself. and he's going to burn himself path. >> it's like you waving a red flag in front of a bull to say if you guys don't do what you own. >> joining us is al jazeera political editor michael schur. what do you make of these republican threats? >> for the first time, it's never been like this but for the first time, these republicans who have been in charge now have a majority in the senator and a majority in the house, the first time in a while and they, of course, are going to start flexing their muscles this way trying to say to the president: listen, the american people have spoken. in fact, they have spoke in certain states. they did speak in more states than was expected as you

mentioned at the top of the show. so i don't feel any surprise here each side is now going to posture. the posturing will take us through the lame duck until we see what happens after the new congress is seated at the beginning of january. >> could that posturing translate in to being any more obstructionits than the republicans have already been toward the president? >> it's hard to imagine how the republicans could be more obstructionist but they get a chance to be by default. they get to project obstructionism on to the president. they can go through a litany of legislatio legislation. throw it at the whitehouse to veto and then spend the any time two years saying, hey, we tried. we tried. but the president wouldn't let us do anything. it's exactly what they were doing, but at least this time, president. >> as far as immigration reform is considered, is there anything to be said for the president to set a new deadline for the house, wait for that deadline to pass and then finally, take whatever executive action he wants to

take? >> if this president sets a deadline, he needs to stick by it. i think that was one of the less options of this election is that people were dissatisfied not just with the message that the president was sending but, also, by the fact that when he, you know, wanted to be decisive, he just couldn't find a way to be decisive. if you look at the sort of min your a to what it takes to set a deadline right now, you know the republicans are not going to besi and buy into his deadline now. he's going to have to and they want him to put in executive action. they can, when it comes time again, when the congress is seated to dismantle it. >> that's what they want to do. >> president obama's new conference was a bit strange in that he said he didn't want to temples. he didn't need to read them. his party got walloed. what did you make of his approach pped. approach. he could have taken some blame, using some sort of word that we can carry in to the next news

cycle about what happened. own it a little bit much the president didn't. the president seemed, you know, almost wanting to put blame on other places rather than taking it himself. he is not singularly to blame. some of the candidates didn't run well. i with a comes to mind. i think the democrats could have had a better candidate there. but point that's being made here is that the president has to see that the way his party did things and the way his administration did things has to change, and it's not just that oh, my god, look. the republicans had a great campaign and people want to voted. no. he has to take some of the blame, and i think a lot of democrats, too, wanted to see him do that. >>ays's michael schure from los angeles, thank you. we appreciate it? >> thanks, david. >> one of the challenges that is facing mitch mcconnell is that his republican-led senate has several likely 2016 presidential candidates. there is florida senator marco rubio, ohio senator rob portman, texas senator ted cruz and

fellow kentucky senator rand paul. mccogsaid, though, he isn't worried. >> i serve in a body with a bunch of class presidents. they are all ambitious or they wouldn't be where they are. a lot of folks with sharp elbows and big egos. look, i am not troubled by ambition. and i think we can accommodate

that. 17 won. six of them lost. 1 race remains undecided. former republican florida governor jeb bush was considering a presidential run, 22 won. four lost and two races remain undecided. bush is getting a lot of credit for bringing some latino support to g.o.p. candidates. he did several events in spanish. [speaking spanish.] >> charlie crist has got to go. >> charlie crist is the democrat

and former governor of florida who challenged incumbent rick scott. scott won and a lot of cran donors are credited the help he received from jeb bush. if you want a break from the bush or clinton families and marijuana is your escape of choice, voters in oregon, alaska and washington, d.c. have now joined colorado and washington state in legalizing small amounts of pot. >> more revenue for our state, better law enforcement resources. most xwovrnling, more freedom and more equality. >> yes. >> the exception to the victory speech was in florida where voters narrowly said no to medical marijuana. >> a minimum wage was on the ballot in four states and voters approved raising it in all four. in two years, arkansas will lift the hourly minimum to $8 and $0.50. nebraska will go to $9 an hour. south dakota raised its minimum

by more than a dollar and alaska workers by 2016 will make at least 9.75. the wall to wall election coverage on tuesday night, as always, produced a few funny surprises for the on-air talent trying to guide the coverage. take a look at tom brokaw on msnbc. >> mitch mccog -- could that be? >> no. it's something ambient? >> i am afraid it is, unfortunately. the alarm goes off. there you are. >> exactly. i can't figure out the alarm or the mute function either. only day, the russian-backed cable news channel, russia today had their own coverage of the 2014 mid terms. watch this. >> it's election season and time to play voter suppression. here are your usual methods to stop the vote: voter id. voter rights act reversal. early voting, same-day registration, proof of

citizenship, intimidation, disinformation, misinformation. >> russia today. you get the idea. >> last week admits all of the campaign interviews president obama and michael jordan managed to tease each over over their golf games. jordan started the trash talking when he was asked by sports caster amad rashad who jordan future. >> never play with obama, but i would, but no. >> that's okay. i would take him out. he's a hack. him. >> you want to say that, the president of the united states? >> i never said he wasn't a great politician. i am just sayingacy great (bleep). >> jordan is the partial owner of the sharlo hornets, a team who hasn't done so well. in a radio interview, president obama tease back? >> michael wasn't very well informed about this. i think he might have been trying to give ahmed an extra ratings boost on his show. >> giving him a hard time. there is no doubt michael is a better golfer than i am. >> okay.

>> if i was playing twice a day for the last 15 years, then that might not be the case. you know, he might want to spend more time thinking about the bobcats or maybe the hornets. >> that's a whole another issue. >> well played. up next on "power politics," picking apart the polls. how is it that so many were so far off? plus the mid-term impact on u.s. foreign policy. will the g.o.p. controlled congress push the obama administration to the right? >> al jazeera america presents the best documentaries >> i felt like i was just nothing >> for this young girl, times were hard >> doris had a racist, impoverished setting had a major impact >> but with looks charm.... >> i just wanted to take care of my momma... >> and no remorse... >> she giggles everytime she steps into the revolving door of justice

>> she became legendary... >> the finer the store, the bigger the challenge >> al jazeera america presents the life and crimes of doris payne

>> devastating climates... >> if we don't get rain we'll be in dire straits... >> scientists fighting back... >> we've created groundhog day here... >> hi-tech led farming... >> we always get perfect plants everyday... >> feeding the world... >> this opens up whole new possibilities... >> tech know's team of experts show you how the miracles of science... >> this is my selfie, what can you tell me about my future? >> can effect and surprise us... >> don't try this at home... >> tech know, where technology meets humanity only on al jazeera america many republicans were quick to criticize the president's forging policy. more hawks in the u.s. senate not lead to a more hawkish stand on international issues. >> the mid-term results paint the commander in chief as a lame

duck, waddling down the steps of air force 1 many republicans who despise his style of government at home will also want to know how the u.s.'s foreign policy will be affected. on issues ranging from the standoff with russia, the strategy against isil, immediate perception is that a harder line is likely to be followed than president obama would naturally want to pursue. >> i think we are going to see a much more aggressive foreign policy from the united states. i think we are going to see much less foreign aid. i think the president's going to have a lot less room to negotiate with the iran nuclear deal. it's going to have less room to negotiate when it comes to ukraine. the u.s. peace process, any negotiations with palstein and israel are going to be hawkish. he wants to make properties tots world but get approval from a congress that doesn't want to work with him. >> little doubt that in jerusalem where prime minister netanyahu has fought off increasingly strident criticism by the obama administration, the

government will feel it has a protective layer surrounding it in congress. in russia, president putin has proved imperfectous to threats of sashsz. he is unlikely to want to offer concessions to some of his strongest critics in washington concessions to some of his strongest critics in washington. it may not for the that more hawks means a more hawkish foreign policy. >> you think you will see a more divided one. the republicans have criticized obama with one voice. they agree they don't like what he is doing. what they haven't been able to agree on is what they should do, whether we should pursue a different kind of engagement abroad or more attention on domestic issues. >> it happened. >> the reality may be that u.s. foreign policy already accused of a lack of focus has even less direction in the next two years as the republican party simultaneously restricts the commander in chief while working out a co herent strategy to take

international elections in the end, that can only mean less american influence in the immediate future. lawrence lee, al jazeera. >> there were a lot of polls before this year's mid-term elections. it turns out many of the polling organizations were way off. in arkansas, . >> for more on this, welcome bill complieder. mbc, maris, these are not fly by night. wrong?

>> well, they all made the same mistake. they underestimated the size of the republican wave. >> that's because the wave started developing really at the very end of the campaign a lot of voters told pollsters they were not sure how they were going to vote. they overwhelmingly made up republicans. >> led to a serious under estimation of the size of the republican wave. >> given in the final outcome, at least the public now lack of confidence in pre-ly polling, what is the use in terms of polling organizations in terms of the media and the candidates? are they still relevant? >> there is no relevant. there is no alternative. if you don't have polls and you want to know what does the election look like? you are going to have to talk to people on the street, which is very unreliable or supposedly informed observers who will give you their own opinions polls are imperfect imperfect. no one can be taken as authoritative.

i was amused by the news organizations. a lot of major newspapers collecting vast amounts of information and coming up with strange projections that would say the republicans have a 602% chance of winning and a 76. back to 59 i did not know what to make of those estimations. they turned out to be far too trust. >> the news organizations, themselves, then he then, lose credibility. what do they gain in a first instance by sighting a 67%, 62%, whatever they are? they create a factsor important in elections. they create expectations. in american politics, it's not just to win. you have to do better than expected. there is an invisible candidate called "expected." if you do worse than expected, then you lose, or you do about as well as expected. so what the poles do really is set expectations that's a very, very important part of our political process.

>> one thing i know a lot of experts were predicting was with all of the money flowing into the mid-term elections and ads a record number for mid terms, that would depress turnout. were you surprised at all? some people suggested don't worry. the obama voters are going to show up. a lot of people said, to heck with both parties. >> that's right. there was a very low turnout nationwide. a lot of disgust. i describe a mid-term election that's all side shows and no main event. people >> the presidential election. turn out at mid terms was lower. it was especially low because of a low level of confidence in democrats and republicans. republicans were a little more energized than democrats which is what explains the republican wave. democrats were de moralized. a lot of them were disappointed in obama's failure to deliver on things like immigration reform. so, the result was a very turnout. >> political analyst bil schneider, we are never

depressed when we see you. thank you for coming on the show. the sgop made history during the mid terms. it had nothing to do with taking control of the u.s. senate. thanks to house elections an african-american woman will serve in that chamber for the g.o.p., a republican party first and the g.o.p. will also have the youngest house republican woman ever. both lawmakers could help the party's reputation. kristin saloomey reports. >> reporter: it's been called the party of angry white men. republicans are all smiles since the election with some of their winners challenging the stereotype. mia love is the first black woman elected to the house of representatives as a republican. the daughter of haitan i am grasped, the message of more personal responsibility resonated in the conservative state of uta? >> we are not interested in dividing americans based upon jevenldzer, race, social stad u.s. we are more interested in the integrity and the honesty of

a candidate, someone who is going to return power back to washington. >> we did it! >> 30 yooertd steffanic was elected to the house as a republican, a harvard graduated who worked for george w. bush before returning to rural new york to work in her family's business and run for. >> i am honored and humbled to be the youngest woman ever elected to the united states congress and to add an additional crack to the glass ceiling for future generations of women here tonight. >> my favorite part of running for congress... >> both were heavily supported by the republican party, which democrats have accused of waging a war on women over reproductive rights as well as disenfranchising black voters. >> clearly, it's a good look for the republicans. this doesn't mean that for the, the republicans are going to

start getting 20 to 30% of the black vote. i mean symbolism can take you only so far. >> voters agree it's a step in the right direction. >> about time that some changes happen, you know. this is always the same thing, always the same republicans, always the same people running the show, you know. >> i always like when i see women getting in. raise the glass ceiling whenever you can. >> republicans have long been accused of lacking diversity. so these wins in uta and here in new york could be crucial for the party, especially as it looks ahead to the presidential elections of 2016 and the possibility of facing a very popular woman democrat, hillary clinton. kristin saloomey, al jazeera, new york. just ahead, federal sxwoovment indictment, threatening reporters, public temper tantrums? no problem. some of the bad behavior voters ignored this election cycle. voters in maine rendered bear

hunting with jelly donuts. we will bring you those results after this.

some of the mid-term results that were particularly shocking. the 11th congressional district, under a 20 count federal indictment.

earlier this year, he threatened to throw a reporter off of the balcony. >> we wanted to get him on camera on that but he, as you saw, refused to talk about that. back to you. >> i want to be clear to you. (bleep) . >> in a swing district and after that outburst, it should have been an easy race against grim. right? the problem dominic ret nia, one of the most inarticulate candidates the district has ever seen, grimm under indictment beat him by 13 points. in illinois's 12th congressional district which is considered a swing district, the competitive race there features incouple bent bill enyert and bosk who he was known as melt-down mike after shooting a neighbor's dog several years ago and repeatedly

blowing a gasket as a state lawmaker. >> and now, i feel like i need to say let me misery. >> that was the mostly brutal ad of the campaign. trott still won by 16 points. incredible.

in minnesota's 8th congressional district, republican challenger stewart mills faced off against rick noland on the left. democrats took aim at mill's wealth and long hair. >> it costs a lot to good thet luck, lucky for stewart mills iii, he inherited millions and a job with a 6-figure salary. >> that's not enough for mills. so he is running for congress to give millionaires like himself another big tax break. >> that effort where stewart, brad pitt mills lost and noland won by about 3700 votes. in maine, voters faced a ballot initiative about bear hunting. yes 1 would have outlawed not the killing of bears but the use of traps feature can sweet treat did like jelly donuts. the voters decided if it's legal to kill a bear, you might as well let the animal have a tasty final immediately. the sweet treat restriction was rejected. one of the most stunning races in the 2014 mid terms involved

the maryland gubernatorial race. maryland has twice as many registered democrats as republicans. democratic lieutenant governor anthony brown lost to republican candidate larry hogan. all is not lost for maryland democrats, though. out going democratic governor martin o'malley is considering a 2016 presidential run. even better, o'malley is a solid guitar player and has a great voice. here he is from the brown campaign event ♪ this land is your land. ♪ this land is my land. ♪ from california, to the new york islands. ♪ from the redwood forest, to the gulf stream water did, ♪ this land is made for you and me. ♪ >> if he brings that guitar to eyewa and new hampshire, he might actually have a 2016 shot. and that is our show for today. i am david shuster on behalf of all of us at pow"power politics," thanks for watching.

♪ >> yemen's government is sworn in, but the crisis is far from over because of deep divisions. >> from al jazeera's headquarters, i am darren jordan. remembering those who died, trying to cross from east to west. germany marks 25 years of the fall of the berlin wall. plus, catalans defy and vote on a referendum. and anger mounts in mexico after the government's response to a disappearance of 43 student teachers.